When I meet him, Greg Hobbs is limping. His ankle is in
plaster – an accident on the squash court. In the introduction
to this series, I mentioned how the Barossa benefits from not having
too many lifestylers. If you were being mean, you could describe
Greg as a lifestyler: he came to wine late after a previous life as
a policeman in an anti-terrorist unit in Adelaide, and then a
fireman. In 1996 he (perhaps unknowingly) made the shrewd decision
to buy the property next door to Chris Ringland, whose wines now
fetch silly money. His first wines were made in 1998 – just half a
ton of Shiraz. Then in 1999 he made the same quantity. US importer
Dan Phillips tasted and offered to buy the lot. In 2003 Greg finally
stopped selling grapes to others, and decided to use all his own
grapes himself.

The wines are very impressive indeed, across the board.
While the old vine Shiraz hogs the limelight, and justifiably so, I
was probably more fascinated by the fantastic Amarone wines. These
are dried on racks, Italian style, a production method that has also
been extended to include a range of sweet whites.

Tasting through the wines with Greg, I get the
impression he is very proud of his wines – and he has every right
to be. Producing such an interesting range of wines like these,
he’s certainly not just a ‘lifestyler’.

Hobbs Old Vine Shiraz 2004 (barrel sample)Aged in new French oak. Very ripe, sweet fruit on the nose. The
palate shows a huge concentration, but still possesses some elegance
with spicy, tarry oak and plenty of flavour. A complex wine that’s
full of promise. 92–95/100

Hobbs
Old Vine Shiraz 2003Aged in new French oak. Complex, rich spicy nose is vivid and
full. There’s a slight meatiness under the multilayered fruit. The
palate is very rich and concentrated: full and spicy with lots of
structure and good acidity. There’s some new oak evident. Coming
together very nicely with intense, vivid fruit. A big wine but
it’s in balance. 92–94/100

Hobbs Old Vine Shiraz 2002Aged in a mix of new and old French oak. Very classy nose: rich,
vivid fruit with a savoury, spicy, oaky edge and a hint of
meatiness. Refined. The palate is concentrated and rich with a
lovely savoury, spicy underlay to the fruit. Intense with good
acidity. Nice definition here: big and rich, but classy and with
potential for future improvement. Very good/excellent 93/100

Hobbs Amarone 2003 (cask sample)Knockout nose: sweet, ripe, herbal with blackberry fruit. The
palate is open with seamless sweet fruit and good acid. Quite
sensational with lovely complexity and a sweet finish. 92–94/100

Hobbs
Amarone 2002There’s a savoury streak to the dark fruits, with a smooth
creamy edge. The palate is rich with pure elegant fruit. Smooth and
intense; still quite savoury. This will be the first release. Very
good/excellent 93/100

Greg also makes a range of sweet whites, which are
semi-dried and then undergo the normal winemaking process: they
aren’t fortified.

Hobbs Semillon 2003Herby, savoury, nutty nose with some appley fruit. The palate is
rich and sweet with a nice herbal complexity. Tasty stuff. Very
good+ 89/100

Hobbs Viognier 2003Deep colour. Herbal, nutty tea-leaf edge to the nose, which has
some appley, peachy fruit. The palate is lively with good sweetness
and high acidity. Nutty and intense. Very good+ 89/100